As soon as Jordan Williamson’s 37-yard field goal in overtime split the uprights in Autzen Stadium giving Stanford a 17-14 upset victory over Oregon, you could hear the moans and groans and shouts and screams from coast to coast.

In South Bend, for the Fighting Irish, who yesterday ascended to the No. 1 ranking for the first time in almost 25 years, it was cautious euphoria.

But the crystal 11-0 start to the season, a record no honest Notre Dame fan thought the team would attain, can be shattered this week with a loss at USC, a loss that would deny the Irish the chance to play for their first national title since 1988.

In Tuscaloosa, Alabama fans who believe they have the best team in the nation were giving thanks they will have another chance to prove it. Wins over rival Auburn and over Georgia in the SEC Championship Game put the Crimson Tide in position to win back-to-back national titles.

In Athens, Ga., Bulldogs fans are daring to dream big. If Texas A&M and quarterback Johnny Manziel can shred the Tide defense, they believe Aaron Murray, the nation’s leader in passing efficiency, can do the same in the SEC title game.

And across the nation, Notre Dame haters (as with the Yankees, you either love or despise them) are bellyaching the Irish do not deserve to play for the title. Suddenly the formidable schedule the Irish faced at the start of the season does not look so imposing.

Suddenly, Notre Dame’s almost certain loss at USC this week — picture the Trojans’ elite receivers shredding the Irish’s young and suspect secondary — seems winnable after quarterback Matt Barkley walked out of the Rose Bowl on Saturday after a 38-28 loss to UCLA with his right arm in a sling.

Barkley may not be the elite quarterback he has been pegged as by some, but he is a very good senior with the nation’s best receivers. Marqise Lee and Robert Woods have made Barkley look like a poor man’s Andrew Luck. They could have done to Notre Dame’s title dream what Baylor did to K-State’s and Stanford did to Oregon’s.

But not without Barkley, whose season is over because of a sprained shoulder.

“You have to be optimistic,” Barkley said, “about how we can finish the season on a good note.”

This has been nothing short of a great season for Notre Dame. Consider that Tommy Rees, who was expected to be the starting quarterback, could have deep-sixed the season when he got arrested for his role in an off-campus scuffle. Brian Kelly suspended him for the opener, throwing open the starting QB job.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Everett Golson, who had his best game of the season (20-of-30 for 346 yards with three touchdowns and one interception) in Saturday’s 38-0 victory over Wake Forest, albeit against a bad defense, is an emerging star. The defense is set for years to come.

In other words, Notre Dame is back — back sooner than anyone thought. And for many, back too soon.

The Irish aren’t this good, the haters say. Obviously, they are beneficiaries of a schedule that turned out not to be too tough.

Michigan? The Wolverines are good, not great. Michigan State? The Spartans are 5-6. Miami? Good grief. And let’s be honest, they lost that Pitt game, despite the 29-26 (3OT) that was on the scoreboard afterward at Heinz Field.

But let’s look at the flip side. The Irish won convincingly at Oklahoma, a top-15 team. They held off Stanford, which just posted the most impressive road win of the season. And the Trojans are a talented, if not deep and disciplined, team.

It’s a shame Barkley won’t play Saturday because the haters will use that to try to poke holes in what the Irish have done this season. But this is fact: There are only two undefeated teams in the nation, Notre Dame and Ohio State. If it’s so easy to do, the other 122 FBS schools have some explaining to do.

The Irish aren’t sexy. They don’t run a funky offense. The defense, tops in the nation in points allowed, often bends but doesn’t break. You want to hate ’em? Hate ’em. But you’ve got to respect 11-0.